A member of the state board that’s set to consider the $100 million sale of Wyoming’s Kelly Parcel to Grand Teton National Park expressed “serious concern” with the proposal Monday.
Megan Degenfelder, Wyoming’s superintendent of public instruction, said exchanging the square-mile state school trust property for developable federal Powder River land would bring “the most benefit” to Wyoming citizens when compared with the proposed $100 million sale.
Degenfelder, Gov. Mark Gordon, Auditor Kristi Racines, Treasurer Curt Meier and Secretary of State Chuck Gray, members of the State Board of Land Commissioners, are scheduled to consider the sale Thursday morning in Cheyenne.
The Legislature authorized the sale, conditions to accomplish it and the $100 million price tag in Wyoming’s budget passed earlier this year. Regardless, Degenfelder said she was “stunned” to learn the matter was to be considered this week.
“This was clearly weeks, if not months, in the making, and I was not notified until the day before it was posted on the agenda of the Board of Land Commissioners,” Degenfelder said in a statement. The state lands office posted the agenda for the special board meeting Friday evening.
“With the land swap, we were not going to make as much money.”
Rep. Mike Yin
“This is a serious concern because over the last year, I have been leading a task force that includes State Auditor Kristi Racines, the Governor’s policy director, and other officials to identify a Bureau of Land Management-owned, developable area in the Powder River Basin to exchange for the Kelly Parcel,” her statement reads.
The Powder River Basin is rich in coal deposits and the heart of Wyoming’s mining industry.
“The task force has identified well over 100,000 acres that could be acquired in the exchange for the 640 acre Kelly Parcel,” Degenfelder, a Republican, said. An exchange would preserve the Kelly Parcel while also “giving us ownership of developable lands that could produce income for generations to come.”
Sale brings bonus cash
Teton County’s Cheyenne representatives who support the sale say the $100 million deal has statewide backing and far outweighs benefits from a land exchange.
“I just want to remind the public this is one that had the vote of a majority of the House, a majority of the Senate,” state Rep. Mike Yin (D-Jackson) said Monday.
The $100 million price tag is some 60% higher than the $62 million appraised value of the 640-acre school trust parcel, which is inside the boundary of Grand Teton. Because the federal government cannot pay more than the appraised value for the Kelly Parcel, private contributors would have to make up the $38 million difference due to Wyoming.
“And now the money has been raised,” Sen. Mike Gierau (D-Jackson) said Monday.
Seen another way, if Wyoming were to undertake a land exchange, that swap would be on a value-for-value basis, Yin said. Therefore, the proposed $100 million sale will bring Wyoming, and beneficiaries of the school trust program, significantly more value than a land swap.
The $38 million over and above the Kelly Parcel’s appraised value “is not what you’re going to be able to [get] with a land swap,” Yin said. “With the land swap, we were not going to make as much money.”
The state can manage and invest a $100 million payment with a rate of return that helps school children and select state institutions that benefit from the trust.
Residents back the plan
Wyoming widely supports the $100 million sale, Gierau said.
“We just need to remind everyone that the state land board took this issue up more than a year ago and proposed a potential sale,” he said. The board heard from more than 10,000 people.
“Resoundingly the citizens of the State of Wyoming want this parcel sold to the National Park Service for the purpose of enlarging a national park, America’s greatest idea,” he said.
Nevertheless, the state land board asked for legislative direction. That came in the budget bill, passed by a majority in both legislative chambers and signed by Gov. Gordon.
The bill contained conditions requiring changes to a proposed plan for managing BLM land in southwest Wyoming. Those conditions stipulated that the state would not sell the Kelly Parcel if the BLM plan called for certain limits on rights of way and mineral leasing.
“The conditions have been met,” Gierau said, referring to the final BLM plan that’s set to be approved soon.
“Now the ask is for the land board to consummate the sale,” Gierau said. “That’s it — that’s all there is.”
Yin sees only good in the proposed sale, especially as the parcel now generates little revenue for schools.
“It’s a win-win for the State of Wyoming, education of Wyoming kids and people of Wyoming,” he said. This is going to be a parcel that never gets developed and that’s accessible for the whole country for all time.”
In 10 years the value of this land will have doubled. I have very little confidence in Ms. Degenfelder’s logic or decision making. She previously wanted to sell 4,520 acres of state school trust lands for the benefit of approximately 45 private ranching operations in Carbon County. Schools would not have benefited at all from this sale! She also wanted to reduce the testing requirements for Wyoming students to cover-up the below national average testing scores they were receiving in mathematics and reading. Does this sound like a person we should entrust with possibly the most valuable land the state owns?
Degenfelder is not representing the interest of the schools in Wyoming or the Wyoming public but rather her loyalty and representation is to the oil and gas industry – a brazen conflict of interest. She “doth protest too much.”
Her pop is Steve Deg (Kirkwood Oil & Gas) and her bro is Ken Deg (GOP Staff Director of the U.S. House Natural Resources Committee.) Now does this make sense? Its a family business, y’all.
The legislature didn’t just authorize the sale, they required it. Shall means shall. No discretion left. “(b) To effectuate the appropriation under subsection (a) of this section, the board of land commissioners shall sell the Kelly parcel to the United States in accordance with the following:….”
This is prima facie evidence why Wyoming need to have a state superintendent of schools who is NOT elected, rather, appointed by the state school board and is appointed based on his/her qualifications as a proven, experienced, education leader and administrator.
Seems Degenfelder is in need of some ”public instruction” from Wyoming voters. Certainly her math skills could use a tune up! Then again, many in Wyoming believe the sight of an open pit coal mine or the grand view of a well pad every forty acres horizon to horizon is worth far more than mere millions of dollars!
Ms. Degenfelder fails to consider the legislature’s mandate for a cash sale of not less than $100M, $37.2M over the appraised value of the Kelly Parcel. The value of a future exchange is completely unknown – but would likely fail to include this premium. Even if it did, the demand for Wyoming coal continues to weaken, meaning that the estimated value of the federal lands exchanged are likely to diminish with time.
Given the unknowns – the actual dollar value of an exchange and the future value of those lands’ mineral value, compared to a reasonable estimate for what Wyoming’s schools can earn by investing $100M starting tomorrow – it is a no-brainer to take the generous deal that is currently on the table, and to be grateful for our Teton County community’s willingness to pay this premium in exchange for the conservation of the Kelly Parcel, something that will also serve the state over the long term.
Rep. Liz Storer
House District 23
Good points Liz.
Appreciate this response, Liz!
Agreed. Degenfelder is attempting to use her elected position as a platform for future bigger and brighter things. She doesn’t have the smarts, the chutzpah or the support to climb the corporate ladder, so ain’t gonna happen. Degenfelder does one thing 100% : chronic flapping of the lips. These types are a dime a dozen and unfortunately resides in Cheyenne, Wyoming
Unfortunately, you don’t have to have any real qualities to get elected here. Just be a Republican, and a dishonest one at that.
Does conflict of interest ring any bells?
What a joke. This is a blatant zero-hour attempt at a land grab by one of “Wyoming’s finest”. If Ms. Degenfelder is truly surprised by this then she hasn’t been paying attention. But we all know this simply reeks of disingenuousness. Many of people on both sides of the aisle worked hard to get this to the finish line. Our legislature should see past her last minute shenanigans and get this deal done. There are 38 million reasons above appraised value to do so…..and this would be a win-win for our schools and wild and scenic lands.
I had hope for Ms. Degenfelder when she was elected. Better than the alternative, I thought. Now, I am reminded of the old maxim: power corrupts; and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Her tenure has been deeply disappointing.
Her position is not surprising given her background as a lobbyist for the oil and gas industry. Furthermore, her father is a member of the board of directors of the Petroleum Association of Wyoming and is an oil and gas industry land man. She grew up rubbing shoulders with many involved in that industry. I suspect that colors her view that a swap for oil and gas development rights is best for Wyoming.
I hope Wyoming voters are ‘seeing’ how some of our elected officials are behaving. Vote Degenfelder out of office.
furthermore, Ms Degenfelder, you apparently have fallen behind your reading of WyoFile, which covers all things wyoming, in depth, including of course the kelly parcel issue.
Ms.Degenfelder, where have you been the past year+? everyday bev, me, has been well aware of the laborious progress of the kelly parcel to become part of GTNP, as a cast of thousands have jumped through many hoops, successfully, to arrive at the date to finalize this sale. everyday bev also can recall the land switch idea being chewed over, and discarded. plus, are you not aware of the huge value of the kelly parcel to school children across wyoming who come to the parcel to learn first-hand the amazing ecology of kelly parcel? shame on you, and please try to get a grip!!
Whatever they do with the Kelly land, it should never be sold to land developers for building purposes. Landscape is overloaded as it is now..
I’m in favor of a land exchange, value for value. No direct purchase for taxpayers dollars. The feds control to much of Wyoming land already.
So what has she been paying attention to?
Backing corporate coal instead of education? Backing one’s private agenda instead of the will of the people? I smell Mitlaufer in the Superintendent’s oven. Crossing fingers that Hansel and Gretel aren’t in the vicinity.
As a casual observer waaaay down in Colorado Springs, it would seem disingenuous on Degenfelder’s part to act so surprised at this latest development over this piece of Wyoming. Some folks, I guess, get some special rise out of being contrarians? The late-in-the-game attention must give them a quirky sense of satisfaction. Just my humble opinion.
There should be a follow-on story as to *why* Ms. Degenfelder has “…thrown a wrench at plan….”
She has an energy policy background in Wyoming coal country….young and ambitious and what looks like potentially a long political runway in front of her.
Good for her, but in my opinion common sense points that the best political move here is to take the deal in front of you that’s already had Legislative vetting (and ~ $156,000 per acre is nothing to sneeze at) and move on, from the State of Wyoming perspective. Any land exchange between State Lands & feds (BLM) will take a year or two or more just to get the basic framework agreed to, then it will likely get bogged down in bureaucracy hell for several more years, mostly by people on both sides of an exchange that aren’t elected to their jobs and don’t care so much about the political posturing that’s obviously going on here.
The state gains nothiing from the exchange. Sell it. Put the money in the bank. Sell it to the Feds. Do not sell it too anyone else. Retain the ecological needs of the greater Yellowstone/Teton National Park.
Ms. Yates:
“Retaining the ecological needs of the greater Yellowstone/Teton National Park Area” would require the removal of all Humans Domiciled in the Region! Silly Humans! Likely a good idea if you really want to futilely attempt to “safe” the ecosystem from the never ending greed of the Super Organism (aka: Humans)!